Fall Quarter 2011!

I didn't get to do as much as I would have liked to this quarter, but everything I did was a lot of fun!

Mentor/Mentee Scavenger Hunt:
Well, only one other mentor in the group showed up and only two mentees, but this was still a blast! I loved getting to know my mentees and can't wait to have more time to get to know them! It was fun to see how much they had already learned about getting around campus too and getting to share my OSU experience with them.

Vampire Dinner and Dialogue:
This was great! I will admit...I love the Twilight books, but I know that the Cullen's aren't your typical vampires. It was interesting to hear about just how different they really are from vampires of the past.

Bellwether Improv

After seeing last year's spring Bellwether Improv Festival I knew that I had to return to support 8th Floor this fall. My self and several other second year humanities scholars dragged a few other friends to the festival. The great thing about Belwether is that you can come and go in between performances AND its free. Always a bonus. The groups were great once again. I recognized several of the improver's from last years show, and it was interesting to see which schools seemed to get better and which ones were even less funny. I als LOVED the professional groups, of course. It was really cool to see some of the senior members of 8th Floor Improv go onstage with the professional groups. It was as if they were improved as we watched just from being on stage with such great performers. I loved Belwether once again and I hope everyone goes to see it next year!

Study Abroad Expo

One of my favorite "start of the year" activities is the Study Abroad Expo. This years location was moved to Thompson Library, but it was just as satisfactory as the space they previously used in the Union. This year I came in with much more focus then last year. I know that I want to go to Australia for a semester and that I want to do so through a third party provider. This, however, makes the Study Abroad Expo less useful. The majority of the programs that were there this year were specifically Ohio State sponsored programs. I did however have the opportunity to grab some material on a few of the third party providers that also had OSU sponsored programs. I also spoke to someone about the Peace Corps and am now interested in looking into that. All in all, the study abroad expo was a great experience and I recommend it to everyone next year!

Wildlights at the Columbus Zoo

It was so much fun to get to go to the Columbus Zoo and see all the beautiful lights. I had a great time with my friends and it was nice before a very stress filled week of finals. I was sad that they had no giraffes but I did love the elephants too so it made up for it. It wasn't as cold as it was last year and it gave me time to see friends I may not have seen otherwise due to a busy finals week.

Treat the Hungry

I really enjoyed Treat the Hungry last year so Emma and I decided to do it again. We dressed up as the best pirates ever. We ended up collecting a ton of non-perishable food items and also people gave us candy. This also gave me a chance to work on my muscles which is always a bonus. Most people were more than happy to donate. Other than nearly getting a parking ticket it all went according to plan. Overall it was a great time and I would definately do it again next year.

Potluck and Movie Night

Although I was reluctant to go to this quarter's potluck and movie night because of our movie choice, I ended up really enjoying it. It was great to see other Humanities Scholars I had not seen in a while and I ended up really liking Shutter Island. It was a good time and a nice break from studying.

Autumn Quarter 2011

1. Mentor/Mentee Scavenger Hunt.

I was super excited to be a mentor this year, and I'm really glad we had this mandatory event. It was great to get to meet some of the new freshmen in person, especially since I didn't know a whole lot of upperclassmen last year.

2. Treat the Hungry.

Treat the Hungry is one of my favorite events of all time, and I'm glad I got to do it two years in a row. We met some really interesting people this year, and it's always great to collect all of those non-perishable food items for the Mid-Ohio Food Bank. 555 pounds is awesome! I just wish that more people would participate, because it really is a good time.

3. Potluck and Movie Night.

Well, we watched Shutter Island, which is one of my favorite movies of all time. I love the potluck and movie nights because it's a group of people coming together, who probably wouldn't usually, let's be honest, to watch a movie and eat food. Again, more people should participate! These events are more fun than people think they are.

Finals Study Break

The cookies and hot chocolate that were provided in the lobby of Haverfield Sunday night was a nice treat. Finals week is stressful and free food is something that will always brighten a gloomy rain filled week.

The Help Book Club

I was unable to attend the final book discussion, but the mid-book discussion was very fun. While the crowd was small, everyone had many opinions about the book and its themes. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and I'm excited for The Help movie night winter quarter. I liked how the book was told through different perspectives, I think it helped create a more complete view of "the help's" life in the south and how it was viewed by outsiders. My favorite character was Cecilia Foote because she is just a lovable backwoods Barbie who is too sweet and simple for her own good. I think any book that can get such emotional reactions from all kinds of readers is successful and I saw that happen through the Humanities Book Club. I hope next quarter's book (The Hunger Games) is just as popular!

All-Scholars Football (x3)

Although we had a worse record then last year (0-3 compared to 1-2. That one win from last year was due to the other time forfeiting and if they did not, we probably would had to forfeit), at least we played all our games. For next year, we need, as a goal, to not lose due to the mercy rule, at least once. Every game this year, the mercy rule was enforced. Another thing we need to change it how we line-up on offense; we need to spread everyone out so the other team has to account for every person, instead of double teaming people because we have three people near the line of scrimmage "blocking". We also need to utilize the center as a receiver, since I noticed that the other teams usually didn't pay attention to the center.
Hopefully we have a better year next year. It also confusing how there are more women than men in the Humanities Scholars program, however, we can only get three to play? Pathetic.